


skyrocket away from me

by sylveonimbus (cloud_sakura)



Category: Free!
Genre: (probably), Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Superheroes/Superpowers, M/M, Minor Character Death
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-10-22
Updated: 2014-10-22
Packaged: 2018-02-22 04:59:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,680
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2495330
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cloud_sakura/pseuds/sylveonimbus
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>(because there are secrets I must keep, and one of them is you.)</p>
<p>Rin's not sure how he's managed to keep Haruka safe until now, but he doesn't intend to give up any time soon. This might be difficult in the new circumstances he doesn't know he's in yet. Haruka doesn't know what to do in light of those new circumstances. Momo just wanted to be greater than his brother but then he gets a reality check. Aiichirou's just contemplating how his entire friend group has no chill whatsoever (and how he apparently has no talent whatsoever).</p>
<p>Or, the one in which they're not Incredible(s).</p>
            </blockquote>





	skyrocket away from me

**Author's Note:**

> This was supposed to be a fic for [Effie](http://meowtsuoka.tumblr.com) and all my other friends with October birthdays (but I'm ALWAYS late). Title from Boats and Birds (a MUST listen if you're a rinharu fan tbh). 
> 
> On further reflection, maybe posting a fic when you've just finished catching up to the Yowamushi Pedal manga and have been referring to the boys as Rin and his Samezakus is a...bad idea. Do I care? Nope. So, have this completely unbetaed chapter for your reading pleasure, y'all.

The first time Haruka realizes there's something off about the explosions is when Rin starts returning from school, breathless and singed.

He dreads the feeling curling in his stomach, making it churn; the burn in his throat when he tries to speak and nothing comes out. Rin doesn't notice, he only blows a faux-kiss at his roommate and sits down at the table, talking about how he's tired of having mackerel all week.

_He's acting,_ Haruka thinks, and clutches the spatula tighter as he cooks.

***

Everyone knows Haruka is in love with his roommate. Well, _except_ his roommate, because Haru's pretty sure Rin would pass out in horror, or try to fix it, or be awkward and apologetic for not being able to reciprocate. Despite being the silliest romantic on this side of the planet, Rin doesn't do relationships, but he _is_ the kind of person who loves acting matchmaker (Haruka remembers the fiasco with Nagisa asking Rei out last year every time he thinks about it, and cringes) and loves happy, sappy endings. Rin flirts with everything that walks on two legs and the old lady in a wheelchair who lives on the ground floor.

Rin flirts with Haru too. It's a given, really, considering that they're roommates and almost best friends in a way. Rin has no boundaries, none at all, but mercifully he has never entered the bathroom while Haruka's taking a soak in the tub like Makoto used to. That's probably because of the time Haruka wasn't wearing his swimsuit because he thought Rin wouldn't be home for an hour still and lost track of time, and Rin entered the bathroom breathless, only to back out squawking when he stood up in the tub.

Haruka knows that Rin has rules; he has a list that he had tagged to the small fridge with a cherry blossom magnet on the first day they moved in together. The first one is the rule about the two of them not bringing anyone over at the same time, and informing the other previously if it was going to happen. Haruka has never utilized this rule, but Rin has brought guys over often. He'd run into one of them only once in the morning, when he was back from sleeping over at Makoto's (he sleeps over at Rei's too, but prefers Makoto's because Nagisa is _loud_ ) – he had obviously foreign features, bright yellow hair and muted green eyes, and Haruka had instantly, irrationally hated him. He had widened his eyes and fled, still dragging his shirt down on his hips, his shorts almost as short as Haru's favorite jammers, and Haruka had watched Rin saunter out of the bedroom clad only in his tank top and track pants, a lazy smirk on his lips, and barely heard him say “Good morning, Nanase~!” as he made his way to the kitchenette, willing his hands not to shake.

It's just a stupid crush.

(It's not a stupid crush)

In any case, Rin has these rules, you see, and one of them, the fifth one, the one not on the list –

The fifth rule is something they don’t talk about.

There had been a point of time when Haruka had thought that he and Makoto would move in together after their first year of college, but he’d realized that Makoto needed his independence too. He had asked Rin after that, and they had looked up the apartment together.

They’d been looking at a lot of apartments, when Rin had asked him “What are you doing tonight?”

“Meeting Makoto,” he had replied automatically, and Rin’s expression had been the strangest in that moment. “So you’re not coming over to the dorm tonight, right?”

“Yeah, I might stay over. Why?” Haru had added; almost as an afterthought, and watched the redness flare across Rin’s cheeks.

“It’s nothing important,” he’d insisted, but Haruka had seen him going out with that other redhead in his Econ class recently, and he had nodded blankly and spared Rin the embarrassment.

The fifth rule – unspoken rule, the internet had called it, of course, conspicuously missing when Rin had printed that list out and written them down before pinning it to the fridge –

_don’t fall in love with your roommate._

***

The fourth one on the ominous list pinned to the fridge with the cherry blossom magnet, is the fact that they're always supposed to let the other know when they're coming home.

The first time Rin breaks the rule is a few days after that incident. it's a Friday, and Haruka's sure that Rin would be out partying like he usually is, and his suspicions are confirmed after Rin calls him to let him know that he'll be out with Nitori and some of the other underclassmen at the newest club they've discovered.

“Okay,” Haruka says, ignoring the jeers of, “That your boyfriend, Matsuoka?” in the background, and he can almost feel Rin's smile over the phone. “I'll be back by two o'clock - don't wait up if you have class tomorrow.”

Haruka doesn't have class tomorrow, as a matter of fact, so he cooks to calm himself, hoping Rin is not going to get high at the club (his underclassmen seem to be a slightly more sensible bunch, though). He ends up with two people's worth of food, and covers Rin's food, and falls asleep at the table waiting for him.

He wakes up when his face is tickled, his cheek brushing against cool metal. He peers up to see Rin bending over him, carrying him to what he supposes is his bedroom. His hair is messier than usual and the zipper of his jacket is still brushing Haruka's nose.

“What time is it?” he asks, too tired to even blush about his position.

Rin doesn't reply as he walks into the bedroom, depositing him on the bed. The curtains don't keep out much, and Haruka can see dawn's light filtering in through the windows.

“You were out all night,” he remarks. Rin freezes for a second before he draws the covers over Haru.

“I made dinner,” he adds, suddenly remembering the food that's probably gone cold now.

Rin looks at him intently - at least, Haruka thinks he does, before softly uttering, “Go to sleep, Haru,” and leaves the room.

He doesn’t ask Rin about it in the morning, because Rin’s asleep at his own table in his room, and Haru’s the one who manages to get him to bed and promises to make an excuse for him skipping class.

“Sousuke will handle it,” Rin says before he conks out again, and Haruka’s left wondering when exactly did he start being left out of the loop.

***

The first time Haruka breaks the third rule is when Rin comes home from the explosion at the grocery store. The government is calling it a terrorist attack, but it’s very clearly not, because he can see someone in a skintight bodysuit jumping across the rooftops and disappearing into the corner, with another one slinking behind them.

“Supervillains?” the headlines declare, and Haruka sinks back on the couch, heartbeat accelerating in fear.

When Rin enters the room, Haruka doesn’t think, he launches himself at Rin and wraps his arms around him. Rin stiffens before he awkwardly raises his hand and pats Haruka’s back, slowly relaxing and hugging back.

“I’m fine,” he says.

“I called your sister,” Haruka says, and watches Rin turn white. “What the fuck, Haru?”

“You could have been killed in there,” Haruka says, and Rin seems to realize the position they’re in at the same moment and breaks away abruptly, shrugging out of his long coat and hanging it up before he takes off his shoes and stomps into his room. He can hear him talking in hushed voices on the phone, probably to his sister if his urgent tone is any indication, and Haruka finally moves away from the doorway, making his way to the kitchen and grabbing the tea Rin’s mother had sent over in a care package last month (“…you’ll take care of him, won’t you, Haru? I trust you.”)

Haru’s trying to reach the crackers on the top shelf when a warm body presses behind him and plucks the box off it. “There you go.”

“You’re not that much taller –” Haruka begins irritably and turns around, only to stop short when he realizes that Rin is still looming over him, their chests an inch apart at the most; and his eyes are tired but still that unusual bright wine-red. Rin’s leg is trapped in between Haruka’s and he’s leaning too close.

Too close.

“The water’s boiling.” Rin says, moving away. Haruka blinks once, slowly, before hurrying to turn the stove off, his legs still feeling strangely weak. He nearly spills the water while dropping the tea leaves in it, and he can feel Rin’s intense gaze on his back. Haruka bites his lip, moving his hand to his mouth in a nervous habit he can’t seem to get rid of.

“Did you burn your finger?”

“I’m fine,” he snaps, and turns around. “Pass me the crackers.”

Rin hands them over, sliding it across the counter, and shuffles out of the kitchen with a wry smile. The trembling in Haruka’s knees slowly stops as he tries to compose himself.

When Haruka carries the tea in, Rin’s civil, and Haruka knows that he’s fucked up (you haven’t, you haven’t, he could have died), and Rin will probably calm down in a few hours but –

He reaches across, takes the tea with a normal smiling face, and a “Thanks, Haru.” –

what he sees in Rin’s shut off eyes in that one single moment is a barrier that he can’t breach.

***

When they break a rule, they go out.

It’s not a date, of course. Rin would never lead him on like that. But they usually end up having what Haruka likes (“mackerel miso something something,” Rin teases, and Haruka stiffens up and pouts at him) and what Rin likes only if Haruka’s messed up. Which is practically never, but…

All those thoughts go out of his head when the maître-d leads them to a private table and smiles and tells them to have a good time. Haru clamps down on his natural reflex to blush.

It's not the first time they've gotten mistaken for a couple, but this time it's different, because they're at a restaurant, and Rin looks actually nervous to be there.

"You didn't have to bring me here if you don't like the place," Haruka says.  After the third time Rin looks up with a paranoid glance.

"It's not that," Rin mutters, and then purses his lips to look around. "I didn't realize that it was in this neighborhood."

Haruka doesn't understand. It seemed like a pretty normal place, not too high-end and quite peaceful. "Did you hear something about it on the news?"

"Kind of," Rin says. "I've heard they make mean crab cakes here, you should try them out."

Haruka understands a topic-change when he sees one, and leaves it at that. Rin's missed one too many movie nights this last month; and it feels good, being able to talk to him freely about anything again. Rin practically inhales his stir fry chow, and Haruka watches him fondly as he talks.

The phone call comes right in the middle of dessert.

“Isn't this your day off?” he has to ask, when Rin makes a face at the phone. It's his boss, no doubt.

“There's no days off for public servants,” he jokes, and takes the call. His face however, goes from smiling to a little strained, before it goes completely blank. “I understand,” he parrots. He hangs up, shoving the phone in his pocket. “I'm sorry Haru, I'm being called into work again.”

"At eight-thirty in the evening?" Haruka says, not being able to keep the sheer disbelief out of his voice.

“Y-yeah.” Rin doesn't look at him, and he feels a stab of guilt. “I'll make it up to you, I promise.”

“It's not your fault,” Haruka says, shaking his head. “I'll pay–”

“No, I'll pick up the tab,” Rin says, stopping him at the last second, red eyes earnest. He’s already got the cash on the table. “Finish your dessert, I don’t want to ruin it for you.”

Haruka looks away, the contact of his hand making a light blush dust his cheeks. This is stupid. This entire thing is stupid. They’re not on a date, this is supposed to be Rin’s treat, anyone can pay, it’s not –

“I might not return tonight, don’t wait up for me, okay?” Rin’s already taken his hand away, after what seems like an eternity. He turns around, and Haruka doesn’t have time to wonder if his ears are red too (did he make him uncomfortable?) before he’s leaving.

***

He runs, jumping over the edge of the terraces, letting the wind flow around him. It’s easier to move in than water, and Rin thanks his experience with swimming every time he puts on his mask at night.

There are four people standing in the shadows, and Rin can already hear Nitori reprimanding his Captain’s little brother, the wind carrying the words to him clearly.

“...your first mission; and you need to be serious about it, no matter how lovely you find someone at the moment, Dash-kun!”

“I always think you’re lovely, senpai,” is the teasing reply.

“Dash, stop flirting with Echo,” Seijuurou says tersely. “Hello, Featherblade.”

The flame-haired boy pouts and stops and the grey-haired one looks away. Rin shakes his head, wondering exactly when they’re going to take each other seriously. He nods at Sousuke, who’s standing silently at the edge of the building, away from the others, and gets a nod back in return. “Hello, Captain,” he replies.

“We should probably get going,” Nitori says, hands twisting a little, standing closer to Momotarou and away from Sousuke, who is walking over now. Rin frowns at the gesture, knowing that Sousuke’s giving off those negative vibes again. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” Sousuke says, and gets on the parapet of the building, right next to him. His hands turn solid as he touches the cement, and back again to normal flesh. Rin’s used to it at this point, but he doesn’t understand his bad mood.

“Were you with Nanase-san?” Momotarou asks him, coming up behind him. “You’re running a little late.”

“He _is_ my roommate,” Rin deadpans, and narrows his eyes at Nitori shrinking away from Sousuke again. “Shadow, stop that.”

“I’m not doing anything,” Sousuke snaps back.

“Like hell you aren’t.”

“Stop arguing.” The projection of the girl standing at the edge cuts them off, making all of them stand at attention. Seijuurou is the first to turn to her, much to Rin’s irritation. “Someone’s planning a break-in; it’s relatively minor, so the kids can handle it. Featherblade, take Dash and Shadowmetal, Captain’s going to go investigate the other situation with Echo.” She holds up her hand when Momotarou starts to protest. “I don’t care, you wanted a mission: you got it. And you suck at being silent, unlike Echo here, so you’ll have to practice while you’re with those two.”

Momotarou looks at Sousuke and whimpers a little in his throat. Rin doesn’t know whether he feels amusement or pity at the sight. Probably a combination of both. Sousuke really needs to get that stick out of his ass and start actually cooperating with the others, though. He shakes off that thought and climbs up.

“Ready?” he asks.

The others nod mutely.

Rin pulls back the strap of his mask, letting it snap onto his head, moves to the edge, and dives.

“How’s the wind?” Seijuurou asks.

Rin closes his eyes, feels it raise him above the terraces, just like Haruka parts the water when he swims, thinks of what he would says if he knew, like every time he does this. _Don’t fight the wind, Rin. Become the wind. Let it accept you._

It’s the same everywhere.

“Perfect,” he says, and flies, his teammates riding the breeze he manipulates right behind him, as they disappear into the night.

***

Haruka gets around the corner when he hears the muffled screaming, people burning in the darkness.

He instinctively ducks back behind the wall, and sees those people in bodysuits slink by again. There’s a loud explosion in the distance, people screaming.

In the direction of the restaurant where he came from.

He nearly lets out a scream, but then sees the silhouette of the last person, standing on the rooftop, mask concealing his face, even in the moonlight. He jumps down onto the street and races past, distinctive red and black mask illuminated by the lone yellow streetlight as the hood falls off. He’s followed by another with silver hair and he starts running this time, back the long way home, shortcuts forgotten.

***

“Did you hear something?” Aiichirou says, making the rest of them skid to a stop. Fortunately they’re all solid concrete, or the wind-manipulation involved would have been a problem.

“Hear what?”

Aiichirou looks around apprehensively, but the footsteps have faded. “Nothing. Let’s move on.”

“Yeah, I want to get this job over with already, we weren’t even supposed to be doing this,” Seijuurou says, and there’s another explosion in the distance. Rin groans. “I thought this break-in was _minor_.”

“Look’s like they’re on fire tonight,” Momotarou jokes, and Sousuke cuffs the back of his head. The sky lights up orange.

“No time to dawdle,” Rin says, and they run.

***

The first thing he does when he steps into the apartment is slowly take off his shoes before walking as quietly as possible into Rin’s room.

He’s been in here before, of course, they usually leave their doors unlocked and sometimes Haruka does his laundry when Rin’s passed out on the kotatsu doing homework and can’t possibly get up. Sometimes he has little black spots on his fingertips, like he got burnt by something, but Rin always insists that it’s ink from his projects. He’s bound to get some on his hands, he’s still a college student after all; it always causes a mess.

Doesn’t it?

His hand shakes as he opens the drawers, and then the wardrobes, things spilling out a little, making Haruka shove them back in. Rin has always been meticulous with his arranging when he can so the mess is a little strange. He politely skims across the random baby-doll nightgown and other underwear in the third drawer (is it Kou’s? he doesn’t want to know) and goes back to the first one, the one with the least mess –

Rin isn’t messy. Haruka snaps his head back to the wardrobe again, and lifts up the long coat tossed casually inside in a heap.

There’s nothing of remote interest in there and he almost drops it in disappointment but then something glints from inside the coat pocket and he nearly injures himself, snatching it up and pulling it out.

It’s a mask. A red and black upper-face mask.

He puts it back, hands shaking, and closes the door of the wardrobe, calmly walking out of the room and waiting until he gets to the living room until he sinks down on the sofa, like someone took all the wind out of him.

He pulls his feet up, hugging his knees to his chest.

The second rule taunts him from its place on the fridge, written in felt marker under a bright cherry blossom magnet. A little hysterical giggle bursts forth when he realizes that they need to talk about how the next treat’s on Haruka because he broke a rule, but also that he _can’t_ tell him how.

That’s not even the main thing on his mind right now.

_We don’t talk about the fifth rule, Haru._

He wants to call Makoto, but what would he tell him?

“Makoto, I think my roommate is a supervillain.” Haru says to the empty apartment, and buries his head in his hands. He’s fucked, because he finds that he’s scared.

Rin. The same Rin who’s taken him cherry blossom viewing and likes flower meanings and is beaten every time he plays Need for Speed with Ren and Ran, and princess carried him to bed that one time he was asleep. Rin is –

It doesn’t matter what Rin is, because Haru’s not scared of Rin.

He’s scared _for_ Rin.

***

“They’re breaking out!” Dash reports; and he’s already off to close the last two doors. He’s trapped in here, but then, they always are trapped somehow.

“Echo, stall them.” Rin slaps his hood over his head the moment Aiichirou’s singing starts, letting the music awe the crowd, before he swoops down on the last gunman, knocking him out, before looking up at the rafters. “You’re not getting away.”

“Oh, I am, and I’m taking her with me.” The man smirks familiarly at him (that’s all he can see under the illusion, anyway) and drives a metal hand straight into the pendant holder.

The Captain chuckles as his hand closes around thin air. “What the _fuck_.”

“We have alternative measure to protect what’s precious,” Rin deadpans, and the man in the checkered cloak looks down at him, before jumping down to where he is. Every one of his teammates freezes in his place. “Pretty good for a first timer.” The last word is whispered in his ear, “I wonder what you deem as precious – _Matsuoka_.”

Rin doesn’t have time to react in any way at all before the man breaks the glass behind him, already weakened by the Song, and Sousuke gives chase but he’s already out of the establishment.

“Feather!” It’s Dash, holding him up and shaking him. “Are you all right?”

He knew his name. He _knew his name._

Rin frantically thinks about how he’s managed to keep his location secret, how only his teammates know about Haruka, the carefully crafted image, completely failproof. It’s fine as long as he’s safe. They can’t touch him, the ordinary roommate he doesn’t give a fuck about.

Can they?


End file.
